Shadows of the Past: A Shadow fanfiction
by Kanomaru
Summary: The hero who had saved the world was now devoid of purpose...  Until sudden complications arise. Now Shadow must find allies in the most unlikely places as he faces off against his most deadly adversary yet.... Himself. Please R&R, first fic ever!
1. Prologue

**Shattered Reality**

**A Shadow the Hedgehog fanfiction**

**Prologue- The Pewter Sky**

The first signs of night were falling over the sky above Station Square. A small number of stars, beacons of pure light shining down from the infinite heavens, already speckled the dimming azure sky. A brilliant spectrum of reds, oranges, and yellows blazed from behind the crest of a small hill to the south. Suddenly, in a flash of light, a black silhouette appeared atop the hill, a blazing corona of light framing his small body like an aura of power for a short time before the majestic sun finally sank below the skyline, extinguishing the light and leaving the land to bask in the growing moonlight... And leaving the silhouette to dissipate, slowly blending in with the surrounding blackness as if he was being engulfed by the night itself.

Ironic, thought Shadow, this was how his deeds always ended. The rest of the world basked in the glory, while he simply disappeared into relative ambiguity yet again. This, he acknowledged dejectedly, was his lot in life. Sure, he had been hailed as a hero by some, but was still looked upon by many. His allies did not trust him, and everyone else feared him for what he was... An abomination, an artificially created life form that had no place in nature. He had been created to be a weapon, and nothing more... Or so he thought.

The small, black hedgehog looked over the horizon of the small town before him, now alit with the brilliant aura of nighttime lights, and shook his head wearily. What made these humans deserving of his power? They had no right... And yet, he told himself, Sonic could not do it all alone. For he, the ultimate life form, was the only one who knew the true power of chaos... And, more than that, he knew that in order to truly defeat the enemy, it was necessary to know how to think and behave like one. Shadow had experienced both sides of the never-ending war between good and evil... Oftentimes being the deciding influence for both. And yet, it was obvious that he could not live with a hand in both worlds... And so he was an outcast to both. No civilization would ever truly accept him... What could he do? He had no control over how he was created... In his mind, he thought of the one who had brought him into being-Professor Gerald Robotnik, super genius and grandfather to the infamous villain and mastermind Doctor Ivo Robotnik. The man who had destroyed his life just as he had created it... He was not meant to live... He was a mishap, something that was never supposed to see the light of day. His sole purpose had been to destroy the Black Arms, a race of world-conquering aliens who he himself had vanquished quite recently. Now, however, he was devoid of purpose, devoid of meaning... Why, then, did he live on?

(( A tad short, following chapters will be much longer. ))


	2. Chapter 1

**Shattered Reality**

**A Shadow the Hedgehog fanfiction**

**Chapter I- Tools of Destruction**

"Bingo," The black hedgehog whispered to himself as his prize fell subject to his trained gaze. For anyone else, this mission would be ludicrous-but for Shadow, this was a routine mission. Sure, there had been traps-what he sought was prized by the owner and coveted by everyone else-but nobody but those who were well-versed in ancient lore knew what it truly was. What was believed by a rich, corrupt governor to be a priceless gem was far more than he, in his wildest dreams, had realized- He held in his possession one of the seven pure embodiments of chaos in the world. The chaos emerald was in a simple glass case, but as Shadow knew all too well, looks could be deceiving. He knew that if this government man had any sense at all, this gem was well-guarded to the point of insanity. This was why Shadow, GUN's most valuable agent since Rouge the Bat, had been chosen for this mission. His _special talents_ were vital to the success of this mission. He held up a gem of the exact same size and cut-though his was a vivid green while the cased emerald was a deep violet-gripped it tightly, and vanished.

Rather, he _seemed _to vanish. In reality, Shadow was moving more quickly than any machine could track. Thus, untraceable to the mundane security equipment, he slipped in, removed the case, switched the powerful gemstone with an exact, yet useless replica, and replaced the glass box within a fraction of a second. In a few moments, he was back on the roof of the giant manor house, smiling to himself in light of the mission's simple success. "Far too easy," He sighed as the GUN chopper, designed to be swift and silent, hovered in the air above. He jumped to the open side, giving a simple nod to the pilot. "Mission accomplished, move out," He grunted over the quiet hum of the chopper blades, silently spinning in midair.

A few hours later, Shadow found himself sitting in the GUN Debriefing Chamber alongside his longtime acquaintance and partner, Rouge the Bat. Before them and behind a large, ornately-decorated desk, the current head of GUN operations sat in a large, leather chair, staring at the two intensely. "An impressive job as always, Shadow," he said in a low, rasping voice. "Made even more perfect due to the fact that we now have the complete set of emeralds. No longer shall that fool of a scientist Robotnik threaten this country's national security. And it's all thanks to you two..."

"Now, Shadow, for your final mission. You are to infiltrate Eggman's headquarters and destroy it using your power over these gems. With any luck, those accursed gems will be destroyed along with y-err, Eggman," He added under his breath.

Rouge's large ears twitched, a pained expression crossing her white face. "What was that last part, sir?" She inquired suspiciously, her deep gaze penetrating his now-anxious eyes.

"Nothing of importance, Bat," He said, clearly irritated. "Now, then, go and prep for your next assignment. Rouge, you shall be accompanying Shadow, and you will report back with the results. The chopper is waiting to bring you to the perimeter of his suspected base of operations."

"Sir," Rouge said, a slightly angry edge entering her tone, "with all due respect, we just finished a mission! Surely, we should be allowed a rest!"

"Do not speak to me like that, you vermin!" The commander shrieked in rage, standing up in frustration. "You have no rights! Now get out of my sight, the both of you!" The two Mobians stood up in surprise, but Shadow was quick to retaliate. "You are _nothing_ without us, you fool," He whispered, seething with rage, "Be thankful that we are willing to aid you in this pursuit... Because make no mistake, we feel no sympathy for any cause of yours." With that, he stormed out of the office, Rouge skimming the ground behind him.

.: Author's note-seems a little cheesy, I think, but meh. I hate everything I write. Please review. I feel that asking for no flames is redundant as well as obvious, but seems to be the only way to get the point across in many cases, as unfortunate as that is. There will be more action in the upcoming chapters, so keep reading! DWB :.


End file.
